No, guys, T isn't dead...
I wouldn't kill her and have her wake up back in her own world...again...or would I?
*insert evil laughter*
Reviewers:
Mira Black-Snape: Here's the chapter! Hope you like it!
Kat Smith: Thanks! OMG, puppies wanting attention is literally the cutest thing! I might just use that in some way with the Pack! So, kudos to you, luv!
M: Long time no see, sweetie! Nah, she isn't dead...and Eddy is going to be MIA for a while...fair warning! (Also, spoiler alert! ;) )
Touch.
Skin was the first organ that regained control.
The icy cold of sea water gripped at me, licking and nipping at my arms and neck and shoulders. I was coasting away a few feet below the surface of the water. My eyes stayed closed, my nose and ears shut while I tried to deliberate if dying was better or not.
Would I wake up in a hospital back home again?
How many times could I keep this up until the Universe got tired of me and just let me stay dead?
Did I even want to find out?
Even as I began to regain the ability to think, I felt the water currents move around me. A large powerful body swam towards me, cutting the waves to make room for it.
The dark shape sank down till it was just below me and then it begun to rise. My body curled around a shaggy furry thing as it swam up, paddling towards the shore.
My head broke the water surface first, cold air hitting me but nothing else happened. My senses still stayed stubbornly in shut down mode while whatever had saved me, climbed up onto the rocks lining the cliffs where I'd fallen from.
I was rolled over onto the rocks to my back and then some of my hearing returned to me.
It wasn't very good though, it seemed like I was listening to everything while my head was wrapped in a plastic bag.
"Tulika…?"
A dark shape bent over me, voice familiar and worried.
Someone gripped my shoulder, shaking me ever so slightly.
"Come on, champ, you got to breathe."
I want to. My body won't let me, I thought.
Wet hair was pushed away from my neck as someone pressed down on the side of my throat. They picked up my frozen hands and began to rub them, fast and jerky.
"Tulika, you need to breathe."
There was a pause as another someone joined us. This shape was larger, also familiar but I still couldn't process who it was.
"She needs a hospital, Jake. She fell nearly 50 ft."
50 feet…
That didn't seem right…I knew the chances of surviving a fall that high were slim. So why was I still alive?
"I know, I know, I just want…"
He didn't finish saying what he wanted before someone placed a large hand across my chest, pressing down and them moving the hand up to my throat. Wetness collected near my lips.
It tasted salty and musty, disgusting. I would've thrown up if I could get my body to work.
"Damn it, T, I need you to breathe." A spew of profanities followed and then a shock wave hit my body, jerking me up. "Open your damn eyes, Tulika. Come on!" Another shockwave and this one hit right at home.
My eyes flew open.
I drew in a loud, long gasping breath and immediately began to cough. My throat twisted painfully and then I began to hack up large bouts of sea water, cold shudders racking my body.
I turned over to my side to spit out the intrusion in my mouth and I glanced around blindly, gasping.
"Oh thank god!"
Large, warm hands grabbed me and I was hauled upright.
"Jake, be careful with her!" another voice immediately admonished.
"Yeah, sorry,"
I clawed my neck and chest. "Can't breathe," I rasped out. Jake leant me against his chest and the other boy rubbed my back, heat radiating from them, warming my body.
I coughed a little more before the intrusion disappeared from my body and then my body settled for shivers.
"Hey, T, can you hear me?" a gentle voice echoed from my side.
I nodded, my teeth rattling.
"Jake, hospital," I heard.
I turned my head to look for the source of it and saw Sam's dark eyes, concerned and fixed on me. I should've known. Sam was the black wolf who'd driven Victoria away from me.
"Thank you, Sam." I whispered.
"Just relax, Tulika, we'll get you to the hospital." He said.
I nodded again listlessly.
I was alive. I was fine. Just for a few seconds, until my mind picked up its reigns, I had no choice but to let myself be taken care of. I trusted them. They would keep me safe.
I tucked my head against the warmth of the wolves.
"Good, you're okay, alright? You're a champ, you got this. You just need to hold on for a little while longer ok?" Jacob said. He gave me a little shake to get me to answer but all I could do was manage out what sounded like a croak.
"Sam…?" Jake asked again.
"Get her to the hospital. I'll take care of everything else." Sam said.
He placed a hand on my shoulder, squeezing it gently before he ran off.
"Right, ok then, let's go, up you go." Jake stood and swung me up into his arms, cradling me close to his warm body as my arms hung around his shoulder, my legs bumping each other as he took off running in the other direction.
The run towards his car was blurred.
I remembered being lowered into the passenger side of his car, a seat belt strapped across my torso.
Sometime during the car ride towards the Town Hospital I must've passed out again.
I awoke in a small private room, with a window and seating arrangements to my left and a bunch of equipment strapped to me on my right. My door faced the front of the bed and someone had undressed me, a soft white gown with blue checks on it covering me with a similar blanket thrown over me.
Once I was done taking stock of my surroundings, I turned my attention to myself.
I was sore, my body hurt to move and someone had plugged me with an IV. Also around my neck was what looked like a breathing apparatus? There were itchy scratches around my arms, most likely from my own fingers nails when I'd tried to rip out my lungs to get some oxygen into them.
I sighed, leaning back into the warm sheets and glanced out the window. It was raining. I snorted at that. Wow, talk about omens…
I watched the commotion of the hospital through the dark glass of the doors, wondering why I was in a private room.
Guess being the Chief's ward and the Head Doctor's son's girlfriend made you a top priority patient, I thought wryly as the door swung open and a short nurse walked in, looking kindly at me.
"Oh you're awake, lovely," she bustled towards the metal table beside the bed and placed a paper cup on it and filled the metal glass from the water dispenser.
I watched her as she smiled at me and held the paper cup to my lips. I inhaled and immediately recoiled. It smelled almost rancid.
"Oh dear, that won't do. You can't swallow anything solid for at least a day, liquids only." She warned.
"That's ironic, since I nearly drowned." I said.
My voice came out scratchy and muted, as if I hadn't used it in ages. Even more horrifying, salt water collected at the back of my throat. Startled, I rose up a little and the nurse immediately pulled out a bucket from under the bed, holding it up, I spat out the water, falling back onto the pillows gasping.
I blinked rapidly, trying to clear the haze out of my eyes as the door opened again.
"Ah, she's awake."
Smooth, silky voice, I stopped blinking like an idiot and tried to focus on the new arrival but I couldn't quite make out the person. Well, looks like it was back to the blinking.
The nurse put away the bucket, "She's still coughing up water." She notified the person.
"I see. Thank you, Mrs. Hooper, I'll take it from here." The voice was casual and the nurse nodded, patting my shoulder reassuringly then exiting the room.
I watched her owlishly then looked at the doctor who unhooked the clipboard at my bed.
"Carlisle…?" I asked.
"Yes, Tulika," he answered.
"Oh, ok," I said in realization before sinking further into the pillows. I couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed and awkward around the head of the Cullen family. I mean I'd just thought that they'd abandoned me, now here he was, treating me.
Of course, he was here in professional capacity.
"Perhaps, you'd like to tell us about today?" he asked lightly, stepping up to my side and picking up my wrist, checking my pulse.
"Perhaps…if you tell me what happened to me?" I countered.
My brain was picking up speed. Even if I still sounded like a mix of dying platypus and bullfrog, I was coherent.
He gave me a grim smile even as the door opened and Charlie and Bella stuck their heads in.
"The nurse said you were awake and could see visitors." Charlie said, his eyes flickering between me and Carlisle. "Of course, I will give you a moment before continuing my routine." He said. He gave me another look before heading out the door, shutting the door gently after him.
Bella was the first to assault me with a lethal embrace.
"Jeez, watch the ribs, watch the ribs!" I said before she pulled away, looking sheepish. "Sorry, it's just we were so worried about you!" She said.
Her eyes were rubbed red raw and her face looked chalky. Christ, how long had I been in the ER? Even Charlie looked rattled and disturbed. "So, you managed to properly total the Chevy, after all. Only you can do the impossible, T!" he said, his own weak attempt at making a joke.
"Thanks Charlie," I choked and they both winced.
"We should let you rest. So, we'll let you see the others quickly. Carlisle wants to keep you overnight just in case your lungs…fill up again." He swallowed then his eyes fixed me with the sharpness of his occupation.
"After you get home, we're going to have a chat as to what happened to you, ok?" he asked.
I pursed my lips at him as he gave me a pointed look then wrapped an arm around Bella and led her gently away.
"You freaking moron!" Stephen yelled.
"Shh," I hissed at him, my eyes fixed on the door glass, watching Charlie as he spoke with Bella. If he heard anything, we'd be dead meat – literally.
"'Shh…?' You are shushing me? How dare you; I just nearly lost my best friend and you're shushing me?" he glared at me. I raised my eyebrow.
"Who else got into an accident?" I asked.
He gaped at me.
"You…you, you dumb, irritating psycho; I'm talking about you! You are my best friend! You fell 65 feet! Do you know what the doctors outside were saying? They said you could be severely injured! Bella's been crying on my shoulder for nearly an hour, I can't feel that shoulder! And to think that the Cullens were helping me when…" his eyes widened and his jaw slacked as he revealed information I was clearly not supposed to have.
I tried to sit up but pain shot up my arms so I dropped it.
"Say that again," I said.
"I – um – I know you and Cullen aren't on the friendliest – right about now – I mean…huh," he let his arms fall loosely to his side and watched me with downcast eyes.
I settled for narrowing my eyes at him.
"Have you been in cahoots with them all this time?" I asked.
"No…not really, I mean I was just -,"
"Were you attacked?" I asked.
"T,"
"Stephen," I said as dangerously as I could while sounding like a seal.
"Remember that intruder back at your place," he said, his eyes finally meeting my look. I nodded, closing my eyes once as my spine cracked.
"Yeah…well, someone tried to pull one on Ben's mom while I was out with Bella today. Showed up on the doorstep, demanded to know where I was, messed up my room and all nine yards, Jasper happened to be around so he intervened. Got him out and everything, said the guy was drunk so she won't suspect anything. I mean, your crash and a guy randomly showing up on my doorstep on Charlie's desk would certainly grab some eyeballs." He folded his arms, looking almost defiant.
"Are you ok?" I asked.
He nodded. "I wasn't even there. I got to the Chief's house and he told us about you so we came directly. Ben just called and told me. Guess, they thought I'd come straight home from Port Angeles."
I raised my hand up, this time ignoring the tightening of my muscles and rubbed my eyes. "You have to stay with the Cullens today." I sighed.
"That's the plan, princess." He moved closer to my bedside, sitting in the chair beside me.
"Now, how are you?" he asked.
I smiled at him.
"I'll live, Amigo. I – did you say 65 feet?" I gasped suddenly.
He frowned. "Yeah, that's the highest cliff. You know, the one from which," he glanced at the door, "the wolf boys' jump," he said.
"Oh," I said weakly.
"Yeah, 'oh'," He said kindly.
The door opened for the fifth time and this time when I turned my head I was expecting him.
Only, it wasn't him.
"Don't be upset." Alice said consolingly.
I glared at her.
Don't get me wrong. I loved Alice. I loved all of these characters. I was just a teensy bit disappointed when my boyfriend didn't deign to show up to the hospital when I'd had a crash, got chased through the woods by a vengeful vampire and fallen 65 feet.
Did I mention I fell 65 feet?
Yeah, I fell 65 feet and…
There was no sign of Edward.
Once the door had opened, Stephen had stood up almost protectively as the female vampire who was supposed to be my best friend stepped in, looking angelic and ruffled – which was new.
She'd folded herself in the chair Steph had vacated, crossing her legs, giving me a long and piercing look before asking how I felt.
I, being the mature person that I was, turned my head away.
"Tulika," Alice said again.
"Don't talk to me Alice; all of you've been faring so well now, is it really necessary to change that?" I asked snidely.
It was her turn to glare.
It was much more impressive than mine.
"Ok, I admit, we were a little sloppy on our parts but we've done nothing to deserve this behavior." She said stiffly.
"You ignored me for nearly a month!" I nearly yelled and she flinched – she actually flinched before I started coughing again.
"Oh dear," she pulled out the glory bucket and held it out under my face as I dry heaved in it, but this time no water came out.
"Why are you even here now?" I asked angrily as if that last bit of humiliation didn't happen.
"He told me to check on you." She said simply.
"Did you tell him what I would've said?" I asked sweetly. She rolled her eyes at me. "That wouldn't have gone well and you know it, Tulika."
"He didn't even show up to the hospital." I whispered and this time hot tears sprang up in my eyes, reminding me exactly what was bothering me. I stared gasping, clutching my now aching chest.
He was supposed to love me.
He wasn't supposed to leave me hanging behind.
He was supposed to care whether I lived or died.
He didn't.
That's what hurt. What was the point of staying here if they didn't even care?
The door burst open again and this time it was Charlie – again.
"Alice, the nurse said her visitors need to clear out." He said tightly. True to his word, the nurse who had come in before, hurried in, gave Alice a reproachful look and held up a syringe to my IV tube.
"What are you doing?" I demanded.
"Your heart rate sweetie, it's going way out of the range of healthy for now." She said and stabbed the tube.
"No…wait, I don't…" I looked up wildly, watching Charlie usher Alice out who looked back guiltily.
"That ought to do." The nurse said, opening the door.
"Jake…" I gasped out wildly as I caught the big hulking form at the end of the corridor. "Stay with me, please!"
The morphine reached my body and my eyes blurred out of focus.
My last sensation was a warm hand gripping mine.
Bippity Boppity Boo!
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